Triumphant Return
by BabyCharmander
Summary: He couldn't just leave them... Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of the Sky. AU.
1. Piplup and Chimchar

Hiya folks! BabyCharmander here. It's been a while, hasn't it? This is a fic I started writing… a long time ago, and actually finished about a year ago. Never got around to posting it until now, but here it is!

I don't know who will be reading this fanfic without playing the game, but just in case… **Spoilers** for the special episodes of _Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of the Sky_!

As I said before, this fic is finished. I'll probably be uploading a new chapter once or twice a week, depending on how I feel and/or how long it takes me to edit the chapters.

Disclaimer: I own nothing in this fic! Pokémon and all related creatures belong to Nintendo/Game Freak.

On with the fic!

* * *

"Though the parting hurts…"

And it hurt. It really, _really _hurt.

With each step Piplup took up the crumbling tower, his heart ached more and more. It was bad enough that Grovyle was gone, but soon _he _would be gone, too, and that would leave Chimchar—the one who instantly befriended him when he had no-one to turn to, the one who had been exploring with him through all this time, the one who had stayed with him through thick and thin—all alone.

The parting hurt, but he had to stay strong. He couldn't afford to fall apart now, as the fate of the entire world depended on his replacing the Time Gears. If he and Chimchar couldn't do it, then time would stop… and turn the entire world to hell.

He recalled the future he'd seen with a shudder. No, that was not the future he wanted for Chimchar. He was determined to change that future, even if it meant he would have to disappear.

"H-how are you doing, Piplup?" Chimchar's voice sounded somewhat choked, and Piplup remembered that he was still grieving Grovyle's fate.

"Fine," he lied. "A bit hungry, though… we still have some apples, don't we?"

"Yeah, a couple." The Fire-type stopped walking, reaching into the bag he had slung over his shoulder and pulling out two apples. He handed one of them to his partner and sat down. "We shouldn't waste too much time, though," he said before taking a bite.

"I know." Taking a seat, Piplup began to munch on his own apple. "U-um, how many floors have we gone up?"

"About twenty, I think," Chimchar replied quietly. "Not sure how high this tower is, but it shouldn't be too much longer." He finished off his apple quickly and tossed the core aside.

_Not much longer…_ Piplup chewed slowly. _This… this may be one of the last chances I get to talk to Chimchar, then. When will I disappear, anyway? As soon as we put the Time Gears in? I hope not… _He fought back tears as he thought of fading away just as Chimchar put the Time Gears in—neither of them having a chance to say goodbye. _Should I tell him? _Glancing up, he saw Chimchar waiting patiently for him to finish eating. He hadn't finished his apple, but he was starting to feel sick, and decided to toss his snack away. _Maybe I should… What am I supposed to tell him, though? _He swallowed, and stood up. "Ch-Chimchar?"

"What is it, Piplup?" Chimchar asked, concerned. "Are you all right? Y-you look pale."

"Well… it's just—"

"_GET OUT OF HERE_!"

The two young Pokémon whipped around just in time to see a Porygon-Z fire a huge bolt of electricity out of its beak—a powerful attack that Piplup had just barely survived before, and one that he knew he had no chance of surviving now in his weakened state. Piplup's eyes went wide as the bolt seemed to fly towards him in slow motion, and his mind went blank of all but a single thought: _I didn't get to say goodbye._

But the bolt never made contact. Instead, something about twice his size darted in front of him, blocking the electricity. The thing growled when the attack hit, but held its ground.

"_Leaf Blade_!" a familiar voice shouted as the figure ran forward, slicing at the virtual Pokémon with the leaves attached to its wrists. The Porygon-Z immediately disintegrated, and the mysterious figure turned around, smiling.

"_GROVYLE_!" Chimchar exclaimed, practically tackling the Grass-type as he hugged him, tears rolling down his cheeks. "I-I thought y-you…!"

Piplup just stared, eyes wide and beak hanging open in shock at the Grass-type that stood before him. He had cuts and bruises all over him and what even looked like burn marks, but he was _alive._

"Piplup, Chimchar…" Grovyle said gently, wrapping an arm around the Fire-type and smiling warmly at the Water-type.

"B-but…" Piplup started, having finally found his voice again, "Dusknoir! What about him?! I thought—"

"Dusknoir has been defeated," the Grass-type responded. "Once he was taken care of, I found Celebi and had her transport me straight back." He let go of Chimchar and took a few steps forward, kneeling in front of Piplup and wrapping an arm around him. "After all, I couldn't just leave you…"

Grovyle had come back. Even though he'd known that he would disappear soon, he risked getting attacked by Primal Dialga again just to come back to the past to help them in his last moments. Piplup's eyes began to well up with tears, and he threw his flippers around his friend, sobbing. "G-Grovyle…!"

"Hush, it's all right," Grovyle said, hugging the younger Pokémon for a moment. "We've got to stay strong to do this."

"Y-yes…" the Water-type said, wiping his tears away and taking a few deep breaths to try to calm down. "You're right. I-I'll stay strong!" He looked up, giving a determined nod despite the tears that continued to sting at his eyes.

Meanwhile, Chimchar was in much brighter spirits. "This is great!" he cheered with leap of joy. "With Grovyle back, there's no way we can lose! C'mon, let's get to the pinnacle of the tower!" With that, he made his way over to the next room.

Piplup went quiet for a moment, gazing sadly up at Grovyle. "He still doesn't know…"

Grovyle's expression was unreadable, and he simply nodded. "We'll worry about that later. For now, we must continue to ascend the tower."

"…Right."

With that, the two Pokémon followed their companion.

* * *

The group had ascended a number of floors in a short amount of time thanks to Grovyle's strength. Though he didn't seem to be as nimble as he used to be, probably due to the number of wounds that covered him, he was still fighting as hard as he could. If it were possible, Chimchar and Piplup's admiration for their friend had grown even more.

As they were heading up a set of stairs, Piplup turned to look at Grovyle. "So… what happened when you went back to the future with Dusknoir?"

Grovyle grimaced. "It was a rough trip. We both passed out when we got there. When I woke up, Dusknoir was gone… I found him again later, though. He said that Primal Dialga had given up on him, and now had a new ally, so all of his Sableye underlings turned against him."

"Hah, serves him right," Chimchar said with a grin.

Grovyle went silent for a moment, appearing deep in thought. "He… said he wanted to team up with me after that, at least for the time being. The future is a dangerous place, so I reluctantly agreed. We first left to find Celebi, but she had been captured."

"W-was she okay?" Piplup squeaked.

Hearing that, the Grass-type gave a slight laugh. "She transported me to the past again, didn't she? When I found her, though, Dusknoir turned against me. It turned out to be a trap. I managed to defeat him for good, though, and rescued Celebi. She transported me back here, and you know the rest."

"Yup! And we're almost there!" Chimchar cheered.

Grovyle glanced down at the Fire-type warily. "You… you do still have those Time Gears, don't you?"

"Huh?" Chimchar looked up at his friend for a moment, then nodded. "Oh, yup! They're in here." He held out his bag and opened it up, revealing the Time Gears inside. "I've made sure to keep them safe."

Grovyle gazed at the mystical artifacts for a while before speaking up again. "Would you like me to carry them for you?"

Chimchar shook his head. "Nope, I'm good! I can carry them myself," he said, closing the bag and letting it hang over his shoulder again. "You're still hurt and all, so the bag would probably weigh you down."

"Very well."

Piplup, meanwhile, had one of his flippers pressed against his chest. His heart was racing. "I—I th-think we're getting close," he said quietly.

"We are," Grovyle said, now facing forward as he continued to ascend the stairs. "This stairway leads to the pinnacle of Temporal Tower."

"_Really_?!" Chimchar blurted, eyes wide. "That's great! Looks like we'll be able to put the Time Gears in place right on time, then, huh Piplup?"

But the Water-type had gone a few shades paler. "Y-yeah, um… Chi—"

"Go on ahead, Chimchar," Grovyle said suddenly. "I need to discuss something of great importance with Piplup, and we need some privacy with this."

The Fire-type seemed confused, but nodded. "All right. Don't stay here for too long, though!" With that, he bounded up the stairs.

Once Chimchar was out of earshot, Grovyle turned to Piplup. "Don't tell him yet. If you tell him now, then he might be reluctant to put the Time Gears into place, and then we might be too late."

"Is—is that why you wanted to carry the Time Gears?"

"Yes. I figured it would be best for me to put them in, in case Chimchar found out. But I'm not going to force him to give them to me… that would arouse suspicion."

Piplup glanced down at the stair step he was standing on. "Grovyle… I-I wanted to tell him goodbye… But when he puts the Time Gears in—"

"You will still have time," the Grass-type replied. "We both will. Otherwise I would have told Chimchar myself."

"You're sure?"

"Yes."

"…Promise?"

"Promise." Grovyle gave the younger Pokémon a gentle smile once more. "Now let's get going."

* * *

Chimchar had finally reached the pinnacle, and fought to keep his balance when another tremor racked the tower. "Woaaah!" he yelped, holding onto the bag that was slung over his shoulder. "The tremors are getting worse… I'd better hurry!" He glanced around, looking for the place he was supposed to put the Time Gears in, and spotted a platform with a number of gear-shaped grooves in it.

_That must be it!_ he thought with a smile. _We're almost there! I just have to put these Time Gears in, and then we're all done! This is great! _With a grin, he turned around, but his smile soon faded when he saw that Grovyle and Piplup still weren't there yet. _I wonder what Grovyle was telling Piplup that he couldn't tell me, anyway._

Facing the stairs, the Fire-type cupped his hands on either side of his mouth as he called: "Grovyle, Piplup! Come on, let's put these Time Gears in!"

"We're coming! Let's go, Piplup." He heard the rapid scraping of claws against stone, which probably meant that Grovyle was rushing up the stairs. The monkey smiled again, and turned around, running over to the platform where the gear-shaped grooves were.

Before he could reach the platform, however, he heard something like a choked yelp from behind him. Spinning around, he saw that it was only Grovyle and Piplup standing there.

But something seemed odd. Grovyle was standing behind Piplup, partially hunched over him with his arms wrapping around him, holding him back. Both of their eyes were wide, and Grovyle… something seemed wrong.

Confused, Chimchar looked behind him to see if there was something there, but turned back when Grovyle began to speak up.

"I… I didn't think I would have to do this so soon." Something was wrong with his voice, and it made Chimchar shudder. "But I couldn't just leave you…"

What was he talking about? And why wasn't Piplup saying anything? Looking at his friend, Chimchar noticed that he hadn't even _moved. _ "G-Grovyle, what…?" It was then that he noticed what was so strange about the way Grovyle looked. Where were his…?!

"I couldn't just leave you… not when you were just about to make me _disappear._" The Grass-type's face contorted into something frightening—something very un-Grovyle-like. "Grovyle failed in his quest."

In one swift movement, he yanked his arms away, flicking blood into the air.

"_And so did you._"

And Piplup dropped.

Chimchar went numb. His vision was hazy, as though he were in a dream. He felt dizzy and nearly collapsed, barely registering Grovyle's walking up to him, blood dripping from his leaf-blades.

"Give me the Time Gears, Chimchar, and perhaps you won't suffer the same fate as your two dear friends."

The Fire-type's mind spun. This was not Grovyle. He did not talk like Grovyle. He did not look like Grovyle. He did not move like Grovyle. And he did not _act _like Grovyle.

The Pokémon glared. "Give them to me, _now_!"

Something inside Chimchar snapped. "_NO_!" he screamed, immediately lashing out at the creature with his short nails.

The Pokémon stumbled back, snarling as four cuts opened up on his belly. Quickly he recovered, and lunged at the Fire-type.

"_You're not Grovyle_!" Fire spewed out of Chimchar's mouth, enveloping the wounded Grass-type.

Immediately the Pokémon began to scream in terror. "_Chimchar_!" he cried. That _was _Grovyle's voice. "Chimchar, what are you doing?! It's me, Grovyle!"

The Fire-type choked back his flames, eyes wide. "Grovyle?!"

The Grass-type rolled on the stone floor frantically to put out the flames, and finally lay still on the ground. "Ch-Chim… char…"

_What have I done? Why am I attacking Grovyle?! _He felt dizzy and sick, and shook his head in an attempt to clear it. _Am I seeing things? What's wrong with me…? Why did I attack him like that? _Quickly he approached his friend, laying a hand on his shoulder. "Grovyle…?"

Suddenly the Pokémon pushed himself up on one arm and sliced at Chimchar with the leaf-blades on his other arm, snarling.

Chimchar jumped back, eyes wide. _No, this isn't Grovyle! I don't know who it is, but he tricked me…!_ Trying to focus again, he launched another stream of fire at his opponent, who began to scream and roll around again. Once he was sure the Pokémon was too busy to attack him again, he began to make his way over to Piplup, but another violent tremor reminded him that he probably didn't have much time left.

Looking from the raised platform to Piplup and back again, the young Pokémon was torn between doing what he needed to and making sure his friend was all right. _Piplup hasn't moved… but I need to put the Time Gears in… but… Piplup… __**Piplup…!**_Fighting back tears, he darted over to his friend's side, shaking him gently. "Piplup, wake up! _Please_!" The sick feeling in his stomach intensified when he saw the blood pooling out from underneath the Water-type's body. "Piplup, don't leave me… wake up, _please_…!"

The Fire-type was too distraught to see a dark shape rise out of Grovyle's lifeless body. He felt too sick to focus on what was going on around him, and thus failed to notice as the figure slowly approached him. It wasn't until the enormous creature cast a shadow over him that he turned around.

A single, red eye glared down at him.

And everything went dark.


	2. Lapras and Diglett

Hiya folks! Hope you all had a good Christmas. Here's the next chapter!

Remember, constructive criticism is always appreciated, so don't hesitate to point stuff out if you find any errors.

On with the fic!

* * *

Lapras had been waiting for a long time. He knew he would be, of course, but he couldn't help but worry for Grovyle and the two children. Thinking back on that, he shook his head. Who would have thought that it would be two young Pokémon that would wind up being the ones to save their world?

The Water-type started out of his thoughts when he saw something come limping out of the forest. It took him a moment to figure out what the creature was, but when he did, his eyes widened. It wasn't something.

It was some_one._

"Grovyle!" he exclaimed, his front flippers slapping onto the ground in front of him. He could hardly believe the horrible shape the Grass-type was in… There were so many wounds and burn-marks; it was a wonder that the Pokémon was even alive!

"It's… it's done," Grovyle gasped as he limped over to the transport Pokémon. He seemed to be carrying something, but Lapras couldn't make out what it was just yet. "It's all over… finally."

Lapras relaxed. "I knew you would come through," he said with a smile. He looked around, expecting to hear the footfalls of young Pokémon, but his smile faded. "Where are the children?"

At that, the Grass-type choked a little, holding out the object he had been carrying.

It was Chimchar's bag.

A gasp caught itself in Lapras's throat, but he managed to hold it back. "I… I understand." He turned his long neck, looking away as a few tears dripped down his muzzle. "They were such brave Pokémon… But… but at least their sacrifice will not have been made in vain."

Grovyle did not reply to that. "T-take… t-take me back t-to Treasure… T-Town…" he wheezed. "They n-need… to know."

The Water-type faced Grovyle again. Though his eyes shone with tears, he was still smiling. "I will."

The reptile stared at the transport Pokémon for a moment or two before crawling onto his back. "Let's not waste any time, then."

With that, Lapras began to swim through the sea of time, joining Grovyle in his respectful silence for the rest of the trip.

* * *

Sentry duty had been agonizing. Every time a Pokémon stood over the grate, Diglett almost jumped out of the ground with excitement, only to find that it wasn't them. He kept messing up, and Loudred was getting frustrated. If it were possible, the big voice Pokémon had been yelling even _louder _lately, especially when Diglett misidentified a Pokémon. He couldn't help it, though! It had been two days since Piplup and Chimchar had left, and everyone was getting impatient waiting for them to return with good news.

Now they were starting sentry duty again for the third day since the heroes had left. Sentry duty and rescue missions had been going on as normal, but it was getting harder for the Pokémon to focus, especially poor Diglett. He couldn't stop thinking about Chimchar, Piplup, and Grovyle… would they be okay? He'd even asked his dad, but even though the Dugtrio had said that he felt certain the heroes would come back safely, he hadn't sounded so sure.

Diglett sighed as he sat there in the darkness of the sentry pit, wishing there was something he could do to help…

"HEY! What are you DOING down there?!" came Loudred's obnoxious voice. "SHOULDN'T we be getting some VISITORS by now?!"

The Ground-type blinked, looking up at the grate, and was somewhat surprised to see that there was indeed something standing there. Its form was unclear, but he could see the footprints plain as day. "Oh! Pokémon alert! Pokémon alert!"

"THAT'S more like it! WHO'S FOOTPRINT? WHO'S FOOTPRINT?"

After taking a second to analyze the footprints, Diglett froze. "Th-the footprint is…" he whispered. "The f-footprint is…!"

"HUH? Who IS it? SPEAK UP!"

"…_GROVYYYYYLLLLEEE_!" Diglett shouted, immediately diving underground and then digging up the sentry pit as fast as his little claws would allow him. He assumed Loudred had heard him, for he felt the ground tremble as though a stampede was charging up the floors of the Guild.

As soon as the mole Pokémon emerged from the ground, he shouted with joy. "Grovyle! You're al—"

His cry of joy quickly turned into a gasp of shock.

Grovyle was covered in bruises, cuts, and large burn marks that distorted his once-smooth scales. He was eying Diglett over his shoulder, and appeared to be clutching something close to his chest.

"…Oh, it's you, Diglett. You startled me," the Grass-type said, relaxing a little.

"It's okay," the little Ground-type replied with a nod, although he subtly burrowed back a little. Grovyle seemed to be acting strange… was something wrong?

Before he could think on that, though, every single Pokémon in the Guild poured out of the building, all of them talking at once.

"Grovyle! You came back!"

"Hey, hey! It's great to see you again!"

"WOW, what happened to YOU? Are you ALL RIGHT?"

"Oh my gosh! I'm like, so happy to see you again!"

"Meh-heh-heh! Great to know you're back!"

"Where's Chimchar and Piplup?"

That last question silenced everyone.

Diglett blinked, looking around. Where _were _Chimchar and Piplup? He hadn't seen them with Grovyle. Quickly he dove underground and emerged next to Dugtrio. "Where are they, Dad?"

"…We don't know, son."

That unnerved Diglett, and he sank a little. "They… they _are _coming back, aren't they?"

"Grovyle."

Everyone turned around to see the Guildmaster, who had, oddly enough, remained silent until now.

"Can you tell us what happened?"

Diglett looked over to Grovyle, who still seemed upset. Between Grovyle's strange demeanor and his dad's uncertainty about Chimchar and Piplup's return, the little Ground-type's stomach began to knot up.

"Chimchar… and Piplup…" Grovyle managed to choke out, arms trembling as he continued to clutch whatever it was he was holding, "…are gone."

He held out a bag, which everyone instantly recognized as being Chimchar's.

Diglett's eyes widened, and he turned to his father. "Th-they're coming back, aren't they, Dad? …Dad?"

Dugtrio did not answer, but his faces grew somewhat pale.

Seeing that, the mole Pokémon immediately turned back to look at Grovyle. "Grovyle, they're com—"

"Th-they _can't _be gone, by golly!" Bidoof interrupted, stepping forward. "Th-they said they would come back…!"

Grovyle's eyes seemed to be shining with tears. "…Some promises can't always be kept."

By now, Diglett's breathing had quickened, and his vision was blurred with tears. "B-but Dad… Th-they _can't _be…!"

Yet Dugtrio still could not answer. Everyone else was quiet too, still in complete shock as Grovyle's words sank in.

Piplup and Chimchar were gone, and they were not coming back.

The sobs of a young Ground-type shattered the silence.


	3. Loudred and Croagunk

Hiya folks. I figured now might be a good time for a new chapter, so here you are.

On with the fic!

* * *

"HHRRRRRRRRRRRAAAAAA**AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH H**!"

A stone flew across the room, barely missing Corphish and shattering when it hit the opposite wall. Loudred was too furious to care. "HOW COULD THEY **DO **THAT?!" he screamed, stomping around the room.

"Hey, hey, settle down…!"

The big voice Pokémon wasn't listening. "THEY **LIED**! THOSE TWO WERE **LIARS**! THEY **SAID** THEY WOULD **COME BACK**!"

After hearing the news, everyone had gone back to their rooms to mull over what they'd heard. By the time the boys had retreated to their room and the painful truth had started to set in, Loudred's emotional numbness had worn off.

His mind was unclear—everything seemed to be blurred into shades of red as he kept thinking about how Piplup and Chimchar had _lied. _How could they lie?! After all they'd done, how could they lie and say they would be back and then have Grovyle come back _alone_?! It was ridiculous. It didn't make sense, why didn't they come back, why did they lie like that it was so stupid he couldn't believe this—

Suddenly he felt something pinch his foot, and he gave a roar of pain. The pain snapped him out of the rage he'd been in, though, and it was then he realized that he'd been punching the wall repeatedly.

"Hey, hey, _now _will you stop it?"

Loudred had calmed down enough to notice that Corphish's voice lacked its usual pep, and turned around to face the crustacean. Still, he wasn't done being angry yet. "NO! I WON'T!" He pounded the wall behind him again for good measure. "This is STUPID! WHY did they TELL us they would come back, and then NOT come back?!"

"It's… it's like Grovyle said, hey? 'Some promises'—"

"I don't CARE what GROVYLE said!" Loudred roared. "Chimchar and Piplup SAID they would come BACK!"

"S-stop fighting…" came a quiet moan from the other side of the room.

Loudred turned to face Bidoof, who had been crying quietly in the corner for a while now. Why wasn't _he _mad about this? Didn't it make him angry that they'd been lied to, and now their friends were—

…gone.

"Gosh… it's not g-gonna bring them b-back…"

The big voice Pokémon stood there for a moment, stunned. Piplup and Chimchar were gone—they really weren't coming back.

Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Corphish's cautiously crawling up to him. "Hey… you all right?"

Loudred shot a glare at the Water-type, though tears stung at the corners of his eyes. "I'm FINE! SHUT UP!" With that, he stormed out through the doorway, down the hall, and into the main room of the guild's lower level.

Normally Guildmaster could be heard munching a perfect apple in his room, Chatot would be hopping around to make sure everyone was doing his duty, and Croagunk would be stirring something into his cauldron. But today, the floor seemed dead—the door to the Guildmaster's room was shut, no Flying-type was squawking orders at anyone, and Croagunk was nowhere to be found.

"Wh-where IS everyone…?" Loudred wondered aloud, gazing idly around the room. It didn't matter, though; he knew why they weren't out and about.

He walked around the room for a while, straining his acute hearing to try to figure out where everyone was. He could hear Diglett still crying down in the sentry pit and some hushed voices in the Guildmaster's room. With a growl, he climbed up to the next floor, which, if it were possible, was even deader than the lower level.

He wandered around for a moment, trembling as he continued to strain his hearing. Finally satisfied that he was far enough away from everyone else, he threw himself onto the ground and burst into deafening sobs.

"…I thought I would be alone up here."

Immediately Loudred shut up, slapping his paws over his mouth as his face turned red. Somehow he'd failed to notice the dull green form that was huddled in the corner of the room. Wiping the snot from his face, he carefully approached it. "What are YOU doing here?" he snorted.

Grovyle turned to face him. "Trying to sort out my thoughts." There was a strange calmness in his voice that Loudred immediately picked up on.

"Aren't YOU sad, too?" he asked, crossing his arms.

"I've… taken my time to mourn," he said slowly. "Though it was difficult to bring the news to you all."

Loudred stomped over to Grovyle and took a seat next to him. Despite his anxiety, he tried to appear angry. "WHY did they LIE?"

"Lie?" Grovyle asked, turning to the big voice Pokémon in surprise.

"YEAH! Chimchar and Piplup SAID they would come BACK, and they DIDN'T!"

"…Oh." The Grass-type leaned back against the wall. "They weren't perfect… no Pokémon is. They had no way of knowing what would happen to them."

"What DID happen to them?"

Grovyle remained silent for a moment, as though recollecting his thoughts. "…They… they fought their hardest. While they managed to save the Time Gears… they couldn't save themselves." He bowed his head. "They tried their hardest… and did their best. That's what matters."

"So they're HEROES!" Loudred said, grinning despite the tears that stung at his eyes. "HEROES…!" He flinched a little, only to become overwhelmed with grief once more as he burst into sobs.

Around the sounds of his own crying, Loudred heard Grovyle stand, and felt him rub his shoulder gently before walking off.

* * *

It had been a few days. The guild may have become active again, but Croagunk wasn't sure. It was hard to tell at night, when everyone was asleep.

He slowly climbed down the ladder, somehow managing to keep his balance quite well despite the fact that he had a sack slung over his shoulder. Not much was on his mind, then—just the task he'd set before himself. Head down the ladder rungs… five, four, three, two, one.

He touched the floor of the lower level of the guild, glanced around, and nodded. Even after all that had happened, it was nice to be back.

Still, Croagunk didn't reflect on that for too long; his work was not yet finished. He made his way over to his cauldron, set his bag down next to him, and opened the mouth of it. After taking a moment to look over its contents, he pulled out a gold charm with a green string tied around it. Carefully he dropped that into his cauldron and began to stir.

One, two, three, four, five.

He shuffled around through the bag again, and this time pulled out a short white fang, which he examined for a moment before dropping in as well.

One, two, three, four, five.

One final item, a bundle of thin orange hairs, was stirred in, and, in a bright flash, the cauldron spat out a new item—a yellow hat with a red brim.

Croagunk set this object down onto a little stand on his left side, then continued his work, dropping in more items and collecting the ones that the cauldron spat out. After setting the final item down onto the stand, he stepped back to observe his work.

A yellow hat, a white sash, an orange ruff, a yellow cape, a blue dagger, and a gold crown with a blue jewel sat all together.

Yes. That was all of them.

A melancholy grin spread across Croagunk's features, and he silently bowed his head.

After standing there quietly for a few moments, he heard a quiet tinkling sound where Chimchar and Piplup's old room was. A soft voice followed it. "Oh, Croagunk, you're back..."

The frog turned. "Meh-heh, hey there, Chimecho," he said, melancholy grin not fading. "How's it going?"

The wind chime Pokémon gave a weak smile as she drifted up to her friend. "It's... it's been fine."

The dark circles under her eyes did not escape Croagunk's notice, but he did not comment on them. "Good to know," he said, rhythmically puffing out his cheeks a few times. "Has the guild resumed work?"

"Yes, we've all been trying our hardest," Chimecho said with a nod. "Things are… still a little bit of a mess, it seems, so there's been a lot of jobs coming up."

"Meh-heh-heh, I noticed. I've been out for a while on a little personal project… So have you been cooking and running the assembly?"

"Cooking, yes… but Chatot's been running the assembly, actually."

"Chatot, heh?"

"Yes… I've been taking care of Grovyle."

Ah, so he _was_ still around… The frog's cheeks puffed up a few more times. "How's he been holding up?"

"He's…" Chimecho's voice faltered. "I've…"

Croagunk remained silent. She could take her time.

"Croagunk, he's not healing…!" the Psychic-type said at last, eyes welling up with tears. "I don't know what I'm doing wrong!"

"Meh… he was burned, right? He'll probably still have scars."

"No, no, that's not it! They're not scarring! They're not doing _anything!_ His body is just not healing!"

Croagunk kept his grin, but his expression changed a fraction—just enough to make him look a bit more serious. "What else?"

Chimecho gave a start, then looked down at the ground. "…I've been by his side while he was asleep. He talks, sometimes…"

"What's he say?"

"…'Grovyle, you're wrong…' 'Shut up, Grovyle…'"

"Why, has my talk been boring you?"

The two Pokémon turned to see a familiar Grass-type leaning against the wall. He seemed a little shaky and tired, and his smile was somewhat strained.

"Oh! N-no, that's not it, Grovyle," Chimecho stammered, carefully approaching him. "Sorry, I must have sounded rude… You need to go back to sleep, though. You're still in poor health."

Croagunk stood back, watching the scene carefully and puffing his cheeks out a few more times.

"I'll do that, then," Grovyle said. "I thought I would greet Croagunk first, though, since it's been a few days." He looked over at the Fighting-type.

"Heh, it has." The frog did not approach Grovyle. "Hello."

"…Hello."

"Well! It's… it's good that everyone's back, now," Chimecho said, attempting a smile. "But you really do need to get some sleep."

"…I will."

With that, Grovyle turned and left. Not a movement he made escaped Croagunk's notice.


	4. Kecleon and Sunflora

Hiya folks, and Happy New Year! Have a new chapter.

On with the fic!

* * *

The sun was just rising, and already they were setting up shop. Because their stock had tripled, they needed to get the items together as soon as possible. "Sure has been a busy few days, eh, brother?" Kecleon asked.

Purple nodded. "Yeah, the explorers have been so busy! So many more expeditions since our hero returned," he said. Turning around, he set up a group of big apples. "I hope we'll be able to keep up with demand."

"I'm sure we'll be able to! Everyone's been working so hard…" Kecleon sighed, setting a price tag on a blast seed. "I just hope they'll take some time to rest."

"Well, things'll settle down one day or another, I'm sure." Purple gave a shrug, only to start, ears twitching. "Hey, do you hear that?"

Kecleon's ears twitched, too, and he leaned over the counter to look down the road. "Who's coming to shop this early?"

Turning to look, Purple grinned. "Ah, I see it's our hero Grovyle!" He waved a paw and shouted a cheerful greeting: "Hello, Grovyle!"

"Hello!" Kecleon called, waving as well. "Sorry, we haven't quite set up shop yet!"

Grovyle approached them, giving a nervous smile. "Hello, there. Sure you can't sell me anything a bit early?"

Kecleon rubbed his chin. "Well, there's a possibility..."

"Oh, brother!" Purple exclaimed, jumping up. "There was something I wanted to give to him!"

"Oh?" Grovyle turned his attention to the purple lizard, cocking an eyebrow. "What's that?"

Interested, Kecleon turned to his brother, who reached down underneath the counter, pulling out a small box. "This," Purple said, "is a gift for you, our hero!"

"Ah… th-thank you," Grovyle said, taking the box and looking it over.

"I noticed your adventure has left you quite roughed up, and I thought that maybe if you wear this, people might not notice as much."

At that, Kecleon's eyes widened. "Brother, you didn't...?!"

Grovyle opened the box, and immediately dropped it with a clatter.

An old black cloth was hanging over of the rim, touching the dirt path.

Kecleon grabbed Purple's shoulder, pulling him aside. "Have some tact, brother!" he hissed. "That item is for a very specific Ghost-type!"

Purple's face paled. "...Oh… I… I-I hadn't thought…"

Heaving a sigh, Kecleon turned to face Grovyle. "We apologize for that… You don't have to accept the gift if you don't want to." Then, putting on a brighter smile, he continued, "Anyway, we can most certainly sell you some items just before we finish setting up! Now, what was it you—"

"Th-that's…" Grovyle stammered, not looking quite at either Kecleon. "That's all right. I… I just remembered something else I needed to do. I might… c-come back later." Without giving them the chance to respond, he darted back the way he'd come, toward the guild.

Seeing that, Kecleon cast a sharp glare at his brother. "See what you did?! You've gone and offended him!"

"I-I'm sorry, brother…" Purple said with a wince. "I just wanted to help."

Kecleon's expression softened. "It's all right. I suppose everyone's a bit tense right now. But things will get better soon, right?"

Purple relaxed a little. "Yes, you're right. I'm sure they will, in time!"

* * *

Sunflora limped toward the guild, exhausted. Even though she'd used her badge to warp back to Treasure Town, she had never felt so tired in her entire life.

Eight missions in one run. All from the same place.

The guild had been getting mission after mission—which was usually good for business, but all the guild members and exploration teams affiliated with the guild combined couldn't keep up with the requests anymore. And day after day, Dugtrio would be slapping more and more posters onto the bulletin boards. Even though they'd installed two more boards, all of them were still covered.

And that wasn't the worst of it.

She was one of the most experienced members of the guild—except for the Guildmaster, of course—but in all of her adventures, she'd never found anything else that shocked her to the core like what she'd seen that day.

"HEY! SUNFLORA!" Loudred yelled from the top of the hill, startling the Grass-type out of her thoughts. She saw the big voice Pokémon charge down toward her, and stopped in her tracks as he approached her, eyes wide. "What HAPPENED to YOU? You look like a MESS!"

Sunflora looked down at herself, noting that her usually spotless body was covered in dirt, cuts, and bruises. But for once, she didn't care about her appearance. "I-I like, went on a bunch of missions at once," she said, looking up again. A shiver ran down her back. "B-but oh my—"

"AGAIN?" Loudred frowned. "You should TAKE a BREAK!"

"But there's, like, so many missions now and—"

"You're WORKING too HARD!" The Normal-type stomped his foot for emphasis. "You're GOING to HURT yourself!"

Sunflora looked down, shaking her head. "No, no…! Oh my gosh, Loudred, you don't get it!"

"HUH?" Loudred tilted his head. "WHAT don't I GET?"

"The forest is—"

"What seems to be the problem here?"

Sunflora whipped around, surprised to see another Grass-type standing there. "Oh my gosh, Grovyle! I-I just got back from Apple Woods, and—"

"APPLE WOODS?!" Loudred blurted out, throwing his arms out. "THAT'S where you've BEEN all this time?!"

"You… s-seem a bit roughed up to have come from that place," Grovyle murmured, eying Sunflora carefully.

"_I know_!" she cried, covering her face with her leaves. "Grovyle, something's gone wrong…!"

"Wrong? What could be wrong?" Grovyle took a few steps back, looking up at the guild building.

"Apple Woods… it's… it's frozen!"

"FROZEN?" Loudred repeated, giving his friend a funny look. "What, with ICE?" He looked to Grovyle, who appeared even paler than normal.

Sunflora was shivering. "Time… t-time has stopped in Apple Woods!"

"_**HUH**_?!"

Sunflora uncovered her face, looking up at Grovyle through the tears that stung at her eyes. "O-oh my gosh… Grovyle, what's going on? I thought you, like, put the Time Gears back!"

Before she could say anything else, the reptile darted up the hill and into the guild.


	5. Chatot and Bidoof

Heya folks. Ready for a new chapter? …If not, oh well, 'cuz here's one anyway.

On with the fic!

* * *

Chatot tried not to look at Guildmaster Wigglytuff, instead gazing uneasily off to the side of the door. Guildmaster was his friend, of course, and he was normally kind, and, well… a little on the obnoxious side. But that was what made the Guildmaster Guildmaster, right? But as boisterous as the Wigglytuff would get, Chatot knew he could always trust his friend.

But now the Guildmaster was silent, and Chatot could not be any more nervous. He gripped the ground with his talons, feeling as though the rock beneath would rip open if he didn't.

The Guildmaster had given him a command, and he'd fulfilled it minutes ago. Normally he trusted the Normal-type, but now he was beginning to question the sanity of his friend. He hadn't been the same since Piplup and Chimchar had gone, and now they were getting so many missions—perhaps the stress was just overwhelming him.

It was certainly doing that to Chatot, anyway.

"G-Guildmaster," he said finally, though he still didn't dare look Wigglytuff in the eye. "Are… are you sure about this?"

"Yes."

He finally stole a glance at the Wigglytuff, and cringed when he saw him still staring at the door, expression unreadable. Still, he ventured to speak up again. "Guildmaster, I don't think he knows much more than we do."

The Guildmaster said nothing.

Chatot stared at him for a moment, still avoiding his eyes, and finally looked back at the door. Much to his surprise, it creaked open, and a beat-up looking Grass-type poked his head in. "Y-yes, Guildmaster?"

"Grovyle!" Chatot called, forcing a smile and extending a wing in welcome. "Please do come in!"

"And shut the door behind you." Guildmaster's voice was almost hollow.

Grovyle's gaze seemed to be focused on the flat stones in the middle of the room as he stepped in. After a moment, he shut the door behind himself, but still didn't look up. "What did you need?"

"Well, the Guildmaster was wondering—" Chatot began, but started when the Wigglytuff interrupted.

"Tell me what happened when you, Piplup, and Chimchar went to Temporal Tower."

Seeing Grovyle was reluctant to talk, Chatot sighed a little. "I know you've told us before, but could you perhaps go into some more detail?"

"…There isn't much more to say. Dusknoir attacked, and I escaped to the future with him. There, I defeated him, and met my friend Celebi, who took me back here… I met Piplup and Chimchar in the tower, where we returned the Time Gears. But…" he lowered his head. "The tower's guardians there were too strong for the two, and…"

"Grovyle."

The voice somehow commanded both Chatot and Grovyle to look up at the Guildmaster. Chatot finally forced himself to look into the Wigglytuff's eyes, but still they bore the same unreadable expression.

"I do not believe you."

Chatot gave a squawk of surprise, and Grovyle staggered as though struck by a blow. "But Guildmaster—!"

"Please give me the Time Gears."

"_Guildmaster_!" Chatot cried, flapping his wings so hard that a few feathers went flying. "You cannot be serious! Grovyle placed the Time Gears in Temporal Tower!" He looked frantically back at the Grass-type, who was now shaking.

"I… I don't have them."

Guildmaster took a step closer.

"I do _not_ like traitors."

Chatot squawked in terror again, seeing the Guildmaster's eyes narrow ever so slightly. "Guildmaster, please stop—!"

The ground started to shake, and Grovyle fled.

* * *

"_You're wrong! You're all wrong! I-I can't believe you guys…!"_

"_I'm sorry, Bidoof, but it's the truth."_

But it _couldn't_ be the truth. He still didn't believe it, no matter how much they'd tried to convince him. It hurt him that his friends would think that way… and it hurt even more when he finally made the decision to leave the guild.

It was time to go home.

…Just like it had been days ago. Or weeks. He couldn't tell anymore.

Time had stopped, and the world had become paralyzed.

Bidoof scrambled up a small hill, trying to survey the area. Unfortunately, so many things looked the same now, it was getting harder and harder to tell one forest—one cave—one mountain from another due to the changes, and he'd been wandering lost for ages now. Part of him wished he'd stayed at the guild, but the other part of him was worried sick about his family. He was determined to find them, even if it took him years to do so… if years were even passing anymore.

From the hill he stood upon, he could see what appeared to be a rocky labyrinth. He hadn't gone through something like that when he'd first traveled to the guild, but then the land had changed so much that he couldn't be sure this wasn't the right way. Taking a deep breath, he darted down the hill and into the labyrinth, praying that he was taking the right path.

As he wandered, he thought back to his friends again. He still couldn't believe they had actually blamed Grovyle for what had happened. Grovyle, of all people! The one who had returned the Time Gears in the first place! Why would this be his fault?! And how could they chase him out of town like that…?

A pained growl from his stomach interrupted his thoughts, and he whimpered. It was getting harder to find food, since the trees had stopped growing. Nothing was providing apples or berries anymore, and some Pokemon were beginning to hoard what little food they could find. But not all of them were doing that.

Some were turning back to the old ways.

There was a reason Bidoof had been avoiding strangers.

The beaver Pokemon stopped in his tracks upon seeing a slight glint of red that stood out against the gray stone. Eagerly he rushed up to it, devouring the apple, core and all. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing. Even plain old apples tasted fantastic now.

"I can't stand it anymore! I can't _stand_ it!"

Bidoof jumped at the sudden shout, hackles rising and claws digging into the ground. He managed to keep quiet despite his terror, and flicked his ears as he tried to determine where the sound was coming from. "Gosh…" he whispered. "I-I wonder who that could be."

"Would you just shut up already?!" the voice cried.

After hearing it again, Bidoof was able to determine that it was coming from the other side of the wall. Something was familiar about it, though…

"I told you to shut up! Shut up, Grovyle!"

Thoughts of identifying the voice fled from Bidoof's mind, replaced by thoughts of anger. Someone _else_ was being mean to Grovyle now? "H-hey, you should be the one to be quiet!" he shouted, loud enough that the speaker might hear despite the wall between them. "Leave Grovyle alone! Gosh, he doesn't deserve all this!"

Silence followed, and Bidoof shrank down a little. What if the voice was that of a predator, and he'd just given away where he was hiding…?! But the voice spoke up again, quelling his worries: "Yeah? What makes you say that?"

Bidoof shook his head. "B-because none of this is Grovyle's fault!"

He waited for the other Pokemon to respond, but when no answer came, he went on. "Grovyle… H-he did everything he could to fix things! He returned the Time Gears! He risked everything! He gave his all!" Tears stung at his eyes. "I… I dunno why it didn't work… but that doesn't mean Grovyle didn't try!"

It was a few moments before the voice spoke up again. "You're… you're right," it said quietly. "I… wish I had done better."

Bidoof took a step back, blinking in confusion. Better? What was this guy talking about?

"Grovyle was right all along," the voice went on. "It was I who made the mistake."

"H-huh?" Bidoof tilted his head. "Y-you shouldn't blame Grovyle… But don't blame yourself, either! Gosh, it's not your fault what happened to the world!"

"I'm sorry, Grovyle… I'll try to fix things. I want… to shine."

This was getting weird… Was this Pokemon actually talking to Grovyle? The thought made the Normal-type brighten—maybe Grovyle was on the other side of the wall!

Full of excitement, Bidoof charged forward, moving around the labyrinth and trying to find his way to the other side of the wall. A few turns, and he was there—

—and a scream tore through his throat.

There lay a corpse of a Grass-type, frozen in an early stage of decay.


	6. Primal Dialga

Hiya folks. I hope you've enjoyed this story! And thanks to everyone that's reviewed—I wasn't sure I would really get any reviews for this, since it's a little old and since the Pokémon section is so overcrowded. So, thanks to those of you who took the time to review!

On with the fic!

* * *

Time could not change. Time could not change. Time could not change.

That was his purpose—to make sure time never changed. To keep it in place. To make sure it ran properly. But now things had gotten out of hand—he'd lost the Time Gears, Temporal Tower had crumbled, time had stopped, and the world was paralyzed. He had lost control of time, and he had failed.

But he could still prevent time from changing any more than it already had. That would still be keeping with his purpose, would it not? Yes, it would. He couldn't allow time to change. He would still be all right.

So Primal Dialga stomped around the ruins of the tower that he had once proudly perched atop, keeping an eye over all the world. He'd done that when time was still running smoothly, and he'd keep doing it now that the world had gone to hell. He would make sure that time would not start again, for that would mean change, and change was bad. Time had changed once, and the world had become paralyzed as a result.

Arceus knows what would happen if it changed again.

As he marched in his little circle, his tail brushed against a pedestal. The pedestal had five gear-shaped holes in it—where the Time Gears should have been. They had disappeared long ago, and as far as Primal Dialga was concerned, they should stay that way.

A few stones clattered at the far edge of the ruins, and the legendary whipped his long neck around, eyes bulging. What could possibly be intruding on his sanctuary? Surely someone trying to break the delicate flow of time! Why else would they have come here?

Normally the guardians of the tower would have chased such intruders out long before they reached him, but those guardians had fled, which meant Primal Dialga would have to handle things himself.

_Leave, now!_ he wanted to say, but the words left his throat in the form of a wild roar.

But the Pokémon approached anyway, his gray bulk hovering over the crumbled stone floor. "No…" he whispered, clinging to a torn sack. "I-I've returned…"

Primal Dialga had no idea what this Pokémon was talking about, but that didn't matter. The Pokémon was wandering about where he didn't belong, and that was enough for him. He reared his head back and flung it forward in a monstrous roar, hoping to blast the intruder away.

But still the Pokémon pressed forward, bracing himself against the wind, his single eye glowing in fierce determination. "I… will not leave!" He thrust a huge hand into the bag he carried, removing the contents.

Something bolted down Primal Dialga's spine. Although he could not see what the Ghost-type had grabbed, he knew what it was. He could feel it in his very essence: This Pokémon carried the Time Gears.

He was going to try to change time.

The legendary reared back, the fins on his body flaring out and the jewel on his chest glowing in a wicked light. He drew in a deep breath, air hissing around him, and released it in a powerful roar that shook what was left of the foundations of the tower.

The Ghost-type stumbled and gave a shout of pain. "_Grovyle_!" he cried, clutching the Time Gears tighter. "I-I'm not… going to give in!"

Primal Dialga stared in bewilderment. Ghost-type or not, he could still be killed, but this one was refusing to die. His lips curled into a snarl, and the legendary slashed his dagger-like claws at the intruder, ripping through his gray flesh.

The Pokémon cried out in pain, pressing his hand over the deep wounds in his side in a vain attempt to stop the bleeding, but still he moved forward. "I want…"

The legendary slashed at him with enough force to knock him to the ground, just a few feet away from the pedestal.

The Ghost-type refused to stay down, instead pushing himself onto his trembling arms and trying to ignore his wounds. "I want… to _shine_!"

Before Primal Dialga could react, the intruder lunged to the pedestal, shoving the Time Gears into their slots. With a wild snarl, the legendary slammed his foot onto the Ghost-type with a sickening, muffled _crunch._

The pedestal began to glow, and slowly the stones of the ruined tower began to reassemble, building Temporal Tower back up from the ground. All the while, the dark sky began to clear, and glorious color returned to the gray world.

And time flowed once more, after Dusknoir's final, triumphant return.


End file.
